Camels Always Do: Stranger than Fiction

Lynn Manuel (auth)
Kasia Charko (ill)
Orca Book Publishers April 2004
Ages: 4-8 32pp
ISBN: 9781551432847

Ok, this one is fiction, but it is based on a factual event. Lynn Manuel craftily constructs the tale of a boy named Cameron and his love for camels, around the most bizarre happening of the Cariboo gold rush. Fictional Cameron collides with the real life Frank Laumeister and his Dromedary Express. In 1862, Laumeister and his business partners imported a herd of Bactrian or two hump camels (not Dromedary, or one hump camels as the company name would suggest) to help ferry supplies to the miners. For a number of reasons this venture failed. First, the camels had an offensive odour (camels always do, at least any I’ve encountered) that even the mules could not stand. Second, having feet that were suited for walking on sand, and not rock, the camels suffered many injuries on their long treks. Finally, the animals had a difficult time withstanding the harshness of the winters in the Cariboo.

Cameron is a likeable young man, and his love for camels is the perfect vehicle to educate the reader about camels. I love camels. They are one of my favourite animals, but don’t worry if you have no fondness for the ornery creatures. This book will entertain both you and your children. One camel, in particular, named Barnum, will charm you with his distinctive personality. Kasia Charko must also be credited for bringing this book to life. She manages to illustrate 21 camels, each with its own unique character.

This story is clever, educational, and contains just enough of the bizarre to captivate your child. My two-year-old has been chanting “camels always do” for the past week. I’d recommend checking this book out. If you are like me, you will be thrilled to enjoy a well written story with your children that will provoke their lust for knowledge and stimulate their imaginations. I have found “Camels Always Do”.

Innuit Thought of It: Diamonds from the Tundra/ Stranger than Fiction

Alootook Ipellie (with David Macdonald)
Annick Press
Ages: 9-11 32pp
Softcover ISBN 10: 1554510872
ISBN 13: 9781554510870
Hardcover ISBN 10: 1554510880
ISBN 13: 9781554510887

If you are looking to become acquainted with the Inuit culture, this book is the place to start. I can’t get enough of this amazing celebration of innovation and resourcefulness. Alootook Ipellie has done a wonderful job of unveiling the mystery of the Inuit culture, by relating it to the everyday. Parkas, kayaks, sleeping bags, lamps ... I could go on and on, but you’ll get a better idea by reading the book. However, I will say that you will be intrigued by raincoats made from whale intestines, bird skin parkas, and sealskin food storage bags. I have read a few books on the subject (I am not only a former cold weather wilderness survival instructor, but also the mother of three children of Inuvialuit heritage), and, in my opinion, this is the best books, for youth, I have come across regarding both Inuit heritage and primitive survival techniques.

The Inuit Thought of It has a remarkable flow, not found in many works of non-fiction. The layout is about as reader friendly as it gets (thanks to Sheryl Shapiro), and the amazing photographs will keep you turning the pages. An airborne snowboarder and a kayaker negotiating white water mingle with black and white photos of Inuit hunters, athletes, and craftsmen- giving the book both an historical and a contemporary feel.

If you would like to debunk the myth of the “Eskimo” and educate your children about a hardy and ingenious culture, find yourself a copy of The Inuit Thought of It. They will come away with a decent grasp of the history of the Inuit peoples, their shelter, food, clothing, recreational activities, and medicine, as well as their modern ways of living. This book is not only a young anthropologist’s or survivalist’s dream, but also a good entertaining (and if you don’t know what makes me excited, by now) educational read.

It was an extreme pleasure to share this book with my mother-in-law, as it led to a dialogue about her own life in the arctic. The three little inspirations love to hear their grandmother’s tales of her days as a nomad, and thoroughly enjoyed sharing Ipellie’s book with her. I am extremely glad that Alootook Ipellie thought of it!

If you’re a crafter (I am crazy about crafts), here is a great craft I learned while teaching wilderness survival. Take a piece of cardboard and cut it out into the shape of a masquerade mask (framing the eyes). Cut two horizontal slits over each eye hole. They do not need to be very wide. Punch holes on both sides and tie a piece of string or ribbon to the ends, for straps. Decorate with paint, glitter glue, or whatever your imagination can conjure up. Viola! You have a pair of Inuit snow goggles. Take the kids outside on a sunny day and let them test how great they really work.

• "The Year's Best" List, Resources Links


• Children's Non-Fiction Top 10 List, Ontario Library Association


• 2008/ 2009 Hackmatack Children's Choice Book Award finalist

A Crash of Rhinos, A Party of Jays: Stranger than Fiction

Diane Swanson (auth)
Mariko Ando Spencer (ill)
Annick Press 2006
Ages: 5-7 24pp
Softcover ISBN 10: 1554510473
ISBN 13: 9781554510474
Hardcover ISBN 10: 1554510481
ISBN 13: 9781554510481


Diane Swanson has written quite a little treat, here. Whether you are looking to satisfy a junior erudite, or simply entertain your child with a book that is not only educational and clever, but also fun, you will score with A Crash of Rhinos a Party of Jays. Swanson takes a fun look at “The Wacky Ways We Name Animals Groups”. I particularly like the gang of elk. For those unfamiliar with these animals, let me assure you they are not beyond knocking over some fences to rob a herd of horses (horses do hear extremely well) of their hay. There is also a tower of giraffes, a leap of leopards and a raft of ducks, to name a few. A zoology student could use this book as a study guide, yet it is short enough to read to your preschoolers.You will find yourself chuckling through this quick little read, and are sure to enjoy the quirky illustrations of Mariko Ando Spencer.

• "Our Choice" List, Canadian Children's Book Centre

Super Crocs and Monster Wings: Stranger than Fiction

Claire Eamer
Annick Press Feb 2008
Ages 9-11 96pp.
Paperback ISBN 10: 1-55451-129-1
ISBN 13: 978-1-55451-129-7
Hardcover ISBN 10: 1-55451-130-5
ISBN 13: 978-1-55451-130-3

Beavers as big as bears, crocs as enormous as city buses, dragonflies the size of a hawks, massive ground sloths large enough to nibble on tree tops, animated bulky tanks-like creatures hunkering about, and rabbit-sized North American camels? A strange sci-fi world? No ... try, prehistoric Earth. Eamer has given life to all of these strange beings, while recounting millions of years of our little blue planet's history. "Super Crocs and Monster Wings" is definitely stranger than fiction.


This look into the prehistoric world is an appetizing trail mix. Eamer's book contains plenty of wholesome science, mixed in a medley of tasty tidbits, chewy facts, and delicious photos and illustrations. The evolutionary journeys, of six animals, are examined in a fast paced manner that is sure to engross any reader. Eamer begins by introducing each of the animals with a fictitious (but highly plausible) scenario that brings the long extinct being to life. The layout of this book is ingenious. Eamer has included such a vast amount of detail; it would seemingly boggle the mind. Not so in "Super Crocs and Monster Wings". Fun facts, sections devoted to such topics as, "How to Become a Fossil", captivating photographs and amazing artists' renderings, as well as an appealing contemporary design, are more than stimulating enough to prevent cerebral fatigue. If your child is not hyped for science, this is one will turn them around. If you have a budding young palaeontologist or geologist on your hands, they won't be able to put it down.


I can only hope that Eamer finds a calling as a textbook author before the three inspirations hit high school. If they had given us books like this to read in science class, I likely would have paid attention, rather than doodling and penning poetry. I really enjoyed "Super Crocs and Monster Wings", and found it informative. I love killing two birds with one stone, and being entertained, while learning is about as good as it gets. I recommend this book to parents everywhere. Your kids will think you are not only smart, but maybe even just a tad cool, when you dazzle them by explaining what large corkscrew formations have to do with giant beavers, or how sloths may have once sailed the seas, afloat on vegetal mats. As my children are very small, it was not an ideal bedtime story , for them. However, we have had a wonderful time browsing the pictures, while I showed off my new found knowledge of the prehistoric world. Don't be turned off by the suggested age range. Older teens will love this one. And for anyone who has struggled to find a good read for a boy, if the title doesn't make it obvious, this book will be a heaven-send. Boredom and dullness, like all the species to have inhabited the Earth, are 99% extinct.